CHERIE BALOWSKI: SMALL TOWN GIRL AND CREATIVE ETSY SELLER

Cherie Balowski is from a small town in south central Michigan, land of the lakes. She was born an artist. Her passion for art, creating crafts and singing started at a very early age. Cherie started making art with crayons, watercolors, pencils and chalk.

GIRL FRIENDS

Cherie says she is a small town girl who loves good guitar music, classic rock, singing and playing her guitar, riding her motorcycle, visiting her son and two grandsons in Arizona and art, ART, ART!!!

I LOVE BUGS

Cherie’s first 'crafty type' projects were sculpting and painting on clay. She also carved rubber stamps, embossed copper plates, learned macramé and made paper mosaics and collages. In high school Cherie started sewing. Then she started painting anything she could get her hands on. Once she discovered the computer, a whole new world of digital art was opened for her.

PAISLEY QUEEN

Cherie is inspired by the beauty that surrounds her.

GARDEN LOVE

Cherie is an artist who works with whatever medium she is in the mood for that day! She enjoys creating art in many forms, from digital art collage sheets, digital clip art and digital scrapbook pages to hand painted gourds, baskets, beaded jewellery, paper mache, felting and everything in between.

FUNKY HATTED WITCH III

Cherie especially loves creating ACEOs...they are Art Cards, Editions & Originals. There is quite a growing number of artists and art collectors who see that these wonderful 'small format' works of art are fabulous collectibles! They are in the standard trading card size of 2.5" x 3.5" (just like baseball cards) and can be purchased in as many art forms as you can imagine. Altered, sketched, 3-D, photographs, digital art, fabric, mechanical, beaded, pencil, ink, acrylic, oil...the list is endless. As long as they are the standard size, they are considered ACEOs.

ST PATRICKS DAY

Besides original ACEO art cards for sale in Cherie’s ETSY shop you will also find a great collection of digital art that you can purchase and then receive through your email system. These fun and unique clip-art sheets are great for digital scrapbooking, journaling, scrabble tile pendants, altered art, ACEOs, greeting cards, stickers, postcards...whatever you can dream up!

MERMAID AND CHILD

Currently Cherie is designing for various POD (Print On Demand) sites such as Zazzle, RedBubble, Greeting Card Universe and more.

PRINTABLE CANNING JAR LABELS

Cherie enjoys meeting fun 'creatives' online at Twitter and FaceBook. You can join her at many of the online art groups that she is proud to be a member of like Mixed Media Workshops and Magical Holiday Artists.

EASTER STICKER SHEET

Cherie’s Arts ‘N Crafts on ETSY

Cheries Arts ‘N Crafts on Soopsee

Cherie’s Art on Bonanza

Cheries Art on Artfire

Cheries Art Card Store

Cheries Art on Printfection

Cheries Art on Zazzle

Cheries Art on Picture Trail

Cheries Art on YouTube

Cheries Art on Ebay

Art by Cherie on Skreened

Cheries Art at Redbubble

Cheries Arts ‘N Crafts Blog

Cherie’s Art on Facebook

Cherie’s Art on Twitter

ALL IMAGES COPYRIGHT CHERIE BALOWSKI, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

WINDI ROSSON PAINTS WHAT HER MUSE FANCIES

Windi is waiting for spring. She is waiting to smell the wild honeysuckle, to see the day lilies bloom, and to pick tons of fresh gardenias from the garden on the 5 acres in Georgia where she and her family live. There in the midst of the woods Windi finds peace, quiet, and inspiration for her richly colored, beautiful artwork.

ABLAZE

Windi is a self taught artist. She paints in acrylics and oils, and works with mixed media and photography. The images Windi paints are pulled from her imagination as she believes that when she does this, the painting takes on a life of its own. She says that a painting can start out as one thing, such as a landscape, and then become something entirely different, such as a figurative abstract. Windi’s inspiration comes from many sources and she likes to say that she paints whatever her muse fancies that day.

THESE BOOTS WERE MADE FOR WALKING

Right now Windi is painting some smaller paintings for a brick and mortar venue. She is also experimenting with some mixed media works. Once the warmer weather returns, Windi will be getting back to doing some paintings in oils.

LATER IN THE DAY

These days Windi is quite excited about having secured a new venue in her home town. For the past few weeks she has been busy preparing art work for that. As well she shipped art work out recently for a ‘vinyl’ Art Show in Tempe, which takes place later this month. In addition, Windi is currently awaiting results of some juried art shows she entered work into.

FEBRUARY TULIPS

Windi signed up very early to be a part of Etsy on the suggestion of another EBSQ artist. Life and other things got in the way and she did not start really utilizing the site until a few years ago. Once she saw that it was going to be a viable venue, she began to use the site. She says it is one of the easiest sites to use and navigate for both buyers and sellers.

BLOOM ELEMENTS

Original offerings in Windi’s Etsy shop were mixed media pieces and original paintings. Now she offers original paintings, prints, jewelry and in the future she will be offering art supplies. Recently Windi started offering gift certificates in her Etsy store and she is planning on some special promotions via her Facebook fan page in the very near future.

YELLOW BOAT, RED SAILS

Windi says Etsy has allowed her to broaden her customer base and come into contact with people like minded about selling/buying original art. Her clientele varies from people just starting out collecting art, to other artists and non-artists. Recently, she has seen a rise in interest from interior decorators and designers contacting her about her work.

FEED YOUR SIGHT

Advice Windi offers for new Etsy sellers is to make sure to update your stock frequently and take advantage of showcases if possible. Windi says she loves how Etsy has grown and that it has kept its handmade roots. She says this clearly distinguishes Etsy from other eCommerce sites.

GOOD START

In addition to Etsy, Windi markets her artwork on her website, Live Journal, Facebook, Twitter and wherever else she can find a venue. She offers a lot of original paintings and some prints and tries to keep a diverse price range with the originals. Most of Windi’s original paintings are offered in her Etsy store, however they are also available through her website. Anyone can contact her directly for purchase.

Windi also has a second Etsy store, ART SKRAP, which is where she markets her jewelry products.

Reproductions of her art work on consumer products are available in her Zazzle shop.

Fine Art America offers high quality prints of Windi’s artwork.

Many of Windi’s small original paintings are offered through Art-O-Mat machines around the country.

Visit Windi Rosson at WINJIMIR STUDIOS

WINJIMIR on Etsy

ART SKRAP on Etsy

WINJIMIR on Zazzle

WINDI ROSSON on Fine Art America

Join Windi on Facebook

Follow Windi on Twitter

Connect with Windi on LiveJournal

All images Copyright Windi Rosson, All Rights Reserved

Written by Ruth J Jamieson, Copyright Ruth J Jamieson

MEET NEW ETSY SELLER HEATHER LEE

Heather Lee is a lifelong artist following in her artist father’s footsteps. From her home in Fairfax County, Virginia, Heather paints, creates beautiful art quilts, and raises her young children. Although she learned about ETSY a few years ago from a friend, she just began marketing her art on the site recently.

ABSTRACT QUILT

Heather’s art reflects her environment. She misses the mountains of Colorado and feels that influences what she wants to paint. Her new views are of tree tops and forests and this has prompted her to paint a series of tree paintings.

SNOW

Inspired and guided by her father, Heather has always been an artist. She studied Art at college and earned a B.A. in Fine Art. As a professional artist she has experience as a florist, hot glass and stained glass designing and designing custom textiles.

BUDDHA WITH GUITAR

Heather has always been inspired by the beauty in nature and that inspiration has intensified. No matter how traditional or unusual a subject, she enjoys exploring different possibilities and techniques. Her medium of choice, when creating her paintings, is watercolor painting.

HONEY BEE

Watercolor is a very challenging medium and Heather is always working to improve her skill level and explore new ways to use it. Heather loves working in watercolor because she feels it represents a moment in time because it cannot be reworked much, if at all, and the final product contains a lot of spontaneity

GHOST TREES

A new type of painting that Heather has begun to explore recently is original, watercolor Artist Trading Cards. She finds them an exciting option for expression.

ACEO - LITTLE BEE

Heather’s decision to open a shop on ETSY came after she found she enjoyed shopping and browsing on the site. She found a very high quality of work in the ETSY shops she visited and felt like she would be in good company if she has a shop there.

ACEO - ORCHARD

Since opening her shop a little over a month ago, Heather has listed some of her paintings and art quilts. With the goal of offering smaller artworks at various price points, she has since added greeting cards created from her original paintings and hand painted Art Trading Cards. Her goal is to offer something for everyone who enjoys her art or wishes to give it as a gift.

BLUE ROSES

As a new Etsian, Heather says it is too soon to tell what effect having a shop there is having on her Art business. As well as building her ETSY shop, Heather is building an impressive portfolio on artist site EBSQ, and evaluating some other art websites where she may consider opening shops. For now though, her focus is on ETSY.

ACEO - FIREFLY I

Heather finds the community culture on ETSY wonderful, she says the people are kind and helpful and that makes the whole experience a whole lot easier and less lonely. She also loves how buyers and sellers can contribute equally to treasuries, favorites and comments. Her advice to new ETSY sellers? Join a team, network and be patient.

Visit Heather at Sunny Lee Studio on EBSQ

Browse Heather’s shop Sunny Lee Studio on ETSY

Join Sunny Lee Studio on Facebook

ART TRADING CARDS an International Collaborative Cultural Performance

More about ACEO'S

All Images Copyright Heather Lee, All Rights Reserved

Written by Ruth J Jamieson, Copyright Ruth J Jamieson

WELCOME TO ETSIAN LYNNE REICHHART

Lynne says she is a starving artist working hard to create fun, lovely and sometimes different artwork for your enjoyment.

Lynne promotes her work on Etsy, Zazzle and other inventive ways. Recently she joined an intrepid group of independent artists, ‘THE IndiExhibit’, who together participate in celebrity gift lounges at various Award Events.

FUSCHIA FLOWER CLOSE UP

This January 2011, Lynne participated with THE IndiExhibit in presenting gift bags in GBK’s Golden Globes gifting lounge in L.A. and the SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL in Utah. Lynne’s display piece, a watercolour painting called ‘Fuchsia Flower Close Up’ was chosen for the Golden Globes GBK gift lounge TV & press release - to represent The IndiExhibit. Lynne’s artwork showed up on all the local L.A. television stations all day long.

Everyone that stopped by the IndiExhibit table in the Golden Globe gift lounge received a signed and numbered limited edition print of Lynne's Vancouver BC painting.

VANCOUVER B.C.


Lynne Reichhart reached a point in her life when she felt it was time to explore her creative side. With the support of her husband Steve, Lynne created an art studio in their Upstate NY home and she now leads a happy, busy, creative life painting and marketing her art online

BALLET SLIPPERS

After embracing her creative journey, Lynne studied at the Munson-Williams-Proctor School of Art and at the Kirkland Art Center. She feels that having a better understanding of the fundamentals of art enables her to create better quality artworks. Lynne continues to study with an art professor, learning new techniques and pushing her artistic boundaries.

GLOWING ABSTRACT

Inspiration for Lynne’s paintings is diverse. Objects or scenes draw her inexplicably to them. Each of Lynne’s paintings represents a journey through light and shadow, through perfection and deficiency, through truth and magic. Lynne goes beyond recording what she sees; she interprets, expresses and adds her creative spark to each image.

SOUTHERN MANSION

Lynne describes her style as representational. She loves to explore working with different subjects, mediums and surfaces. Her three top favorite mediums are acrylic, watercolor and colored pencil on canvas or paper. Lynne also paints on three dimensional objects such as tiles. Subject matter such as still life’s or close up floral images are most often painted in watercolor on paper. Lynne says that anything goes with acrylics. She prefers to work in smaller sizes that are more intimate and affordable for her collectors.

PITCHER WITH GRAPES STILL LIFE

Lynne Reichhart has showed her work in many juried, group and solo shows over the years. She has also had her work published in several books including ‘Art on a Plate – The ACEO cookbook’ and ‘Create, Collect, Trade, a Collection of Artist Trading Cards Created by Artists and Students I’ and Create, Collect, Trade, a Collection of Artist Trading Cards Created by Artists and Students II. The latter are used as school teaching tools for the young artists of tomorrow.

CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES ACEO

Lynne is a member of several of her local Artist organizations and volunteers for those groups when she can to help promote arts in her corner of the world.
Rome Art Association
Rome Art & Community Center
Central New York Watercolor Society

Lynne’s on-line Artist group memberships include:
WWAO (World Wide Women Artists Online)
Visual Artist Street Team (VAST)
Central NY Etsy Team

BEAUTIFUL LAS VEGAS PARASOLS

You can find Lynne Reichhart’s work at several on-line venues.

Besides original paintings and prints, Lynne also creates hand painted pendants, bookmarks, tile coasters, tee shirts, cards and many more fun items to give as gifts featuring her work. She just loves wearable art and other functional ways to offer her work. These items can be found in Lynne’s Etsy shop artbylmr

FUN ZIPPER PULLS

Lynne’s shops on Zazzle and Cafepress offer a great variety of products with her artwork on them. (magnets, cards, mouse pads, tees, shoes, iPad and iPhone cases to name a very few)
Fine Art by Lynne Reichhart on Zazzle
Art Gifts with Attitude on Cafepress

Connect with Lynne Reichhart here:

ORIGINAL ARTWORK BY LYNNE REICHHART

LYNNE REICHHART ON TWITTER

LYNNE REICHHART ON FACEBOOK

LYNNE REICHHART FINE ART ON FACEBOOK

AN ARTISTS RAMBLINGS by Lynne Reichhart

All Images Copyright Lynne Reichhart, All Rights Reserved

Written by Ruth J Jamieson, Copyright Ruth J Jamieson.

CAROLYN SCHIFFHOUER – MOON DANCE DESIGN

As long as she can remember, digital artist Carolyn Schiffhouer had an inner desire to express her creativity. Her artistic journey led her through a maze of mediums and techniques, from experimenting with fibre arts, to performing Celtic music for 7 years and finally to exploring the endless possibilities of digital graphic art.

INTO WINTER, Carolyn Schiffhouer

Carolyn became an ‘Etsian’ after observing that some of her cohorts at EBSQ were marketing their work there. Knowing she needed more outlets to market her beautiful work, she opened her Etsy shop MOON DANCE DESIGN. Her clientele generally find their way to her shop via word of mouth.

BARN WITH SKY, Carolyn Schiffhouer

The tools Carolyn uses are the computer, various types of digital software and her own photography. Some of the software she uses includes Photoshop, Painter, various types of Filter software and Apophysis.

Carolyn see’s the computer as the paint brush of the 21st century and feels that this medium will have the impact on the art world in this century that the camera, or the style of the Impressionists and Abstractionists had at the turn of the last century.

Inspiration for Carolyn’s amazing images comes from the world around her. In addition to the wonders she achieves with digital techniques, discovering Fractals opened Carolyn’s horizons further. Using her diverse tools, she layers images, filters colors and creates digital collages comprised of photos, fractals and effects to produce amazingly beautiful images with a somewhat surreal flavor.

AWASH IN FLOWERS, Carolyn Schiffhouer


Next up from Carolyn’s studio will be a group of cityscapes. She has amassed some great photographs of some beautiful cities and feels it is time to create a series. I’m looking forward to seeing this new collection!

PILLARS, Carolyn Schiffhouer


Carolyn’s advice for newbies to Etsy is to market, market, market! Being active in the Etsy community is a great way to be found.

WHITE ORCHID, Carolyn Schiffhouer

Besides Etsy, Carolyn markets her work on Ebay under the ID bromley2. Other Moon Dance Design shops can be found on ARTFIRE and BONANZA

Connect with Carolyn on facebook at Digital Art of Carolyn Schiffhouer

CROSSING THE LOG BRIDGE, Carolyn Schiffhouer

In addition to her online shops, Carolyn belongs to two galleries, The Winkler Gallery of Fine Art in DuBois, Pa., and the Earthworks Gallery in Penn Yan, New York. Recently Carolyn did a show at a local Retirement Community and is presently having a one woman show at Michelle’s Café in Clarion, Pa.

REMEMBRANCES, Carolyn Schiffhouer

All Images Copyright Carolyn Schiffhouer, All Rights Reserved

Written by Ruth J Jamieson, Copyright Ruth J Jamieson

WELCOME TO KATE'S KARDS

Kate Lesko-Smith is a fibre and visual artist and I have had the pleasure of her friendship for the last 12 years. As a young girl, Kate began her journey with fibres & needles, fabrics and scissors. Over the years this talented lady has learned innumerable styles of fibre craft and designed and completed countless projects.

NOVEMBER CARD (flower of the month)

I met Kate when I juried her into my cooperative Artisans gallery in 1999 and we have worked together on various projects ever since. She has helped me improve my knitting skills over the years and I taught her how to work in clay.

MEDIEVAL LETTER

Kate’s primary inspiration is colour. She loves bright, rich saturated colours and uses them in all her projects with abandon. Other inspirations are Celtic and Mediaeval themes and unique embellishments. She loves to add fine sparkling filaments, beads, crystals, unusual buttons and other beautiful details to her work.

BEADED CHRISTMAS TREE

Kate’s Kards is the name of Kate’s Etsy shop. The shop features Kate’s hand painted, stitched, and beaded note cards. Current creative themes are based on nature and the four seasons. In the works right now is a new product line, Artist Trading Cards. Quite frequently Kate does special orders, customizing colours, threads, beads and other details for her customers.

BEADED SNOWMAN

Originally, Kate's cards were placed in local shops and galleries. Seeking more exposure and better sales figures, Kate looked on the internet for a place to sell her cards online and found Etsy. 2011 will bring Kate’s fourth anniversary on Etsy and the addition of her new Artist Trading Cards line.

WINTER PINE TREES

Kate enjoys interacting with customers from around the world and creating customized cards for them. She prefers the Etsy business model to placing her cards in shops because in shops the cards sometimes got damaged or stolen and she had to carry a large inventory.

STITCHED CHRISTMAS ANGEL

Kate also markets her designs at Kate’s Kards on Zazzle.com. The selection available is small but growing.

TREE WITH LIGHTS

VISIT KATE'S KARDS ON ETSY TODAY!


All images are Copyright Kate Lesko-Smith, All Rights Reserved

Copyright Ruth J Jamieson, All Rights Reserved
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